Medicalization can be defined as a social process where medical profession extends its authority over matters not directly concerned with the analysis and treatment of biophysical disorders.[1] Medicalization has also been defined as a process whereby non-medical problems become defined and treated as medical problems, usually in terms of illnesses or disorders.[2] Economic medicalization refers to the same process where non-medical problems becomes transformed into medical problems, but in order to achieve the objective of corporate shareholder wealth maximization. [3]
Critique
Numerous scholars have discussed the bad and the good sides of this phenomenon. The term tends to emphasize the negative aspects of overtreating, overdiagnosing and ignoring non-medical aspects of life problems - this could be called over-medicalization[4] Construing non-medical issues as medical issues commits a category mistake, that can be explained as over-medicalization. For example, sadness is not a medical problem, even though doctors are writing prescriptions to that.[5] Medicalization has also tendency to gain power of doctors and medical science as well as it enables controlling of social phenomenons by health knowledge. Healthcare system works well as long as medicines are used to treat ill people but medicines are nowadays even used to more than only treating diseases.[6]
Medicalization in Finland
The discussion about medicalization has mostly been centralized to USA, but the term is well-known also in Finland. So far, it has been less on topic and under investigation over here. Medicalization in Finland has been especially connected to research on women's health, regarding aging, hormone treatment and menopause. New medicines and treatments have been introduced which indicates a progression of medicalization.[7]
Medicalization and corruption in context of pharmaceutical industry
Geoffreys & Merediths (2009) definition of medicalization (see above) does not only include practising doctors and associations of doctors. It includes also the pharmaceutical industry, the providers of drugs that are essential components of modern medicine. An ethical issue is raised regarding the relationship between physicians and pharmaceutical companies. According to Brennan (et al. 2009) Pharmaceutical companies spend a majority of their marketing expenditure on physicians. [8] Sales representatives from pharmaceutical companies attempt to influence physicians through relationship marketing, where personal interaction with physicians is used to influence decisions. Elements in marketing to physicians is giving free samples of drugs, offering free lunches, paying travel expenses and sponsor educational events in order to to impact on prescription patterns. [9][10]
EU:s report on corruption in the healthcare sector calls this type of activity as improper marketing relations. According to the report, this leads to implications as e.g. directly and indirectly influencing prescriptions from doctors to patients. . The relationships are though not always improper, unethical or illegal. [11]
^ Geoffrey & Meredith 2009, Ethical Transparency and Economic Medicalization, Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 86 Issue 3, p. 313-325.
^ Cacchioni & Tiefer 2012, Why Medicalization? Introduction to the Special Issue on the Medicalization of Sex, Journal of Sex Research, Vol. 49 Issue 4, p 307-310.
^ Geoffrey & Meredith 2009, Ethical Transparency and Economic Medicalization, Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 86 Issue 3, p. 313-325.
^ Cacchioni & Tiefer 2012, Why Medicalization? Introduction to the Special Issue on the Medicalization of Sex, Journal of Sex Research, Vol. 49 Issue 4, p 307-310.
^ Parens 2013, On good and bad forms of Medicalization, Bioethics, Vol. 27 Issue 1, p.28-35.
^ Myllykangas 2001, Terveystarpeiden lietsontaa: mistä medikalisaatiossa on kyse?, Tiedepolitiikka 3/2001, p. 7-22.
Definition
Table of Contents
Critique
Numerous scholars have discussed the bad and the good sides of this phenomenon. The term tends to emphasize the negative aspects of overtreating, overdiagnosing and ignoring non-medical aspects of life problems - this could be called over-medicalization[4] Construing non-medical issues as medical issues commits a category mistake, that can be explained as over-medicalization. For example, sadness is not a medical problem, even though doctors are writing prescriptions to that.[5] Medicalization has also tendency to gain power of doctors and medical science as well as it enables controlling of social phenomenons by health knowledge. Healthcare system works well as long as medicines are used to treat ill people but medicines are nowadays even used to more than only treating diseases.[6]
Medicalization in Finland
The discussion about medicalization has mostly been centralized to USA, but the term is well-known also in Finland. So far, it has been less on topic and under investigation over here. Medicalization in Finland has been especially connected to research on women's health, regarding aging, hormone treatment and menopause. New medicines and treatments have been introduced which indicates a progression of medicalization.[7]
Medicalization and corruption in context of pharmaceutical industry
Geoffreys & Merediths (2009) definition of medicalization (see above) does not only include practising doctors and associations of doctors. It includes also the pharmaceutical industry, the providers of drugs that are essential components of modern medicine. An ethical issue is raised regarding the relationship between physicians and pharmaceutical companies. According to Brennan (et al. 2009) Pharmaceutical companies spend a majority of their marketing expenditure on physicians. [8] Sales representatives from pharmaceutical companies attempt to influence physicians through relationship marketing, where personal interaction with physicians is used to influence decisions. Elements in marketing to physicians is giving free samples of drugs, offering free lunches, paying travel expenses and sponsor educational events in order to to impact on prescription patterns. [9] [10]
EU:s report on corruption in the healthcare sector calls this type of activity as improper marketing relations. According to the report, this leads to implications as e.g. directly and indirectly influencing prescriptions from doctors to patients. . The relationships are though not always improper, unethical or illegal. [11]
http://www.terveyskirjasto.fi/xmedia/duo/duo93826.pdf